RPG Maker Glossary
Evil The opposite of Good. Donglish Refers to the poor english Don Miguel used to translate rm2k with. Characters Characters are the sentient beings, human or other wise that the plot in an RPG revolves around. Developing Characters The process of developing a character is a lot more complicated than many people realize. In order to make your character feel real, you have to put the work into it. Character Names Names are powerful in fiction. They can give a subtle hint to the reader (or in this case, the player) on the nature of the character. You can choose to either stick a name to a character and base their personality on your perception of that name, or create the character first, and the name later. For contemporary names, imagine your character's full name. First, Middle(s), Last. Is the family name paternal or maternal? Does he/she have any nicknames? Fantasy names, on the other hand are somewhat easier. Usually just a concoction of the author's mind, sometimes with a basis in history. Character Background The background is the most important aspect of your character. It will decide how your character thinks and acts. There are a number of factors to consider. How was your character raised? In a family envorinoment? An orphanage? With a single mom? Single Dad? Two Dads? What kind of education did your character receive? Did they graduate? What social group did your character most identify with in high school? College? Does your character like to keep fit? What does he/she do to keep fit? Does your character play any sports? Can they swim? What kind of music does your character like? Can they play an instrument? What kind of mundanely interesting stories would your character have for the water cooler? Is he/she popular? Does he/she have any special skills? These are just a few of the questions you should be asking. Character Personality With any hope, your characters background will have pointed towards a particular personality style. It should give you a specific area with which to work with. From here on out, you've got a fleshed out, realistic character with a background, and a real sense of history. Kudos. Character Styles Hero Controllable by the Party, usually good guys. Villain Not controllable, usually evil NPCs Not controllable, usually not directly important to the storyline. Also called heroes. They are the characters that the story either portrays in a positive light, or is told from their perspective. When creating a protagonist for a game, the character usually falls into one of two genres. The first is the silent hero, the one who has little or no lines. This is done to ensure that the player can best put him/herself in the characters place. The second type is the developed character, who talks, has definate motivation, a purpose, and personality. This type is best suited for games with an in-depth and complex plot. It is dangerous to create a character in the middle, for often times you end up with a character who people wonder, "Why is he doing this? What's his motivation?" Default Battle System The type of battle system used in default by the RPG Maker in use. RPG Maker 2000 A "front view battle system" RPG Maker 2003 A side view battle system like in the Final Fantasy games for the SNES. RPG Maker XP A somewhat front view system. Features Common Features [ System] [ Class System] [ Battle System] [ Menu System] [ Endings] [ Hero Name] Database In RPG Maker 2000 and its sequels, the database stores information on things like Character Stats, Monsters, Chipsets and more. Gameplay Basically, what the player actually does when playing the game. RPGs as a genre tend to have gameplay revolving around Features, puzzles, minigames etc. Ripped When graphics, sound effects or music are taken from a preexisting game, especially a professional one, and converted into resources for RPG Maker usage, it is called ripping. Resource theft is also sometimes called ripping. Sprite refers to any pixel art, especially if it's small in size or depicts a character. Typically refers to charsets and Battle Charsets MIDI A file type accepted by RPG Maker 2000 for music. It is low-fi and small in size. Many are Ripping from professional videogames. Characters The sentient usually humanlike beings that are subject to the plot. Wav A file format used for sound effects and music in RPG Maker 2000. Wav files are often larger than those of other file types and it is reccomended that they be used sparingly. Custom Menu System (CMS) Refers to a developer-created menu system that operates independently or in conjunction with the default menu system in a RPG Maker. The term custom menu system refers to a devloper-created menu system that operates independantly or in conjunction with the default menu system in a PC RPG Maker. Common Types Map Based Picture Based CMSes in RMXP Ripping When graphics, sound effects or music are taken from a preexisting game, especially a professional one, and converted into resources for RPG Maker usage. Resource theft is also sometimes called ripping. RTP The acronym RTP is short for Run Time Package. The RTP is the default resource pack for each maker, containing all the default graphics, music and sound effects for RPG Maker 2000, 2003, or XP. The use of these graphics is generally considered unprofessional and is usually frowned upon. However, many people have been able to use the graphics proficiently and have created notable games using the RTP resources. Sprite Basically refers to any pixel art, especially if it's small in size or depicts a character. Typically refers to charsets and Battle Charsets Switch A named object which is always on or off at any given time. This is one of the primary building blocks in events and scripting. Variable A named object which can contain any integer value. This is one of the primary building blocks in events and scripting. A Articles The counterpart to tutorials, articles serve to inform and inspire rather than to instruct on methodology. Articles regarding RPG Making have been being wrote since the time of Don Miguel's site. This wiki intends to completely replace them as a medium for RPG Maker information and inspiration. B C Cliche Describes ideas that are used too often. The most common perhaps is the good natured adventurous hero who is often quite young, wields a sword and is destined to Save the World. External links The Grand List of Console RPG Cliches D E F G H I J K L M N Noob Game Everyone's first game is one of these. Often have Cliche plots, RTP graphics and dull gameplay. O P Party In most RPGs, multiple characters travel together in a group called the party. Members of the party are controlled during combat. RPG Genres that don't use the party system often have different battle dynamics, like a ABS or TBS. Q R S Sword Most RPGs have a medieval setting, and since the weaponry reflects this, swords are a staple of RPG combat. Types of Swords Swordfighting Techniques The Cliche Factor External Links T Tutorials Explain how to do things with software. U V W X Y Z Category: Articles